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We won't complain about the origins of plaintiff, although complain and plaintiff are distantly related; both can be traced back to plangere, a Latin word meaning "to strike, beat one's breast, or lament." Plaintiff comes most immediately from Middle English plaintif, itself an Anglo-French borrowing tracing back to plaint, meaning "lamentation." (The English word plaintive is also related.) Logically enough, plaintiff applies to the one who does the complaining in a legal case.
Examples of plaintiff in a Sentence
Sarah Sotoodeh, FOXNews.com, 30 Dec. 2025
The plaintiff is seeking damages for violations of his Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment rights, alleging the incident triggered his PTSD.
—Cathy Kozlowicz, jsonline.com, 29 Dec. 2025
With more than two dozen other former JUCO players as co-plaintiffs, the case brought by Pavia against the NCAA could continue without him.
—Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 27 Dec. 2025
Two courts agreed with the plaintiffs, ruling that the IEEPA didn’t authorize the worldwide tariffs.
—Center Square, The Washington Examiner, 27 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for plaintiff
Cite this Entry
“Plaintiff.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/plaintiff. Accessed 1 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
plaintiff
noun
Legal Definition
plaintiff
noun
Middle French plaintif, from plaintif, adj., grieving, from plaint lamentation, from Latin planctus, from plangere to strike, beat one's breast, lament
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